Mortgage Monday: Timing

It seems like a constant dilemma that we are facing week after week, project after project. The simple, yet complicated, question that continues to arise is whether we push some of the renovations back into the spring or just get them done now? As I have disclosed previously, it is a really long list of things that we are planning on having done at the house and the constant routine that we find ourselves in is less than ideal. I guess a better question is how much more of this can we handle?

While a postponement would bring us some quiet time heading into the fall and some greater flexibility in our schedule, it would also leave us with a few things that while not essential, are either an eye sore or simply aren’t conducive to us fully enjoying our home. It would also leave a few things ‘half done’ at this point which is less than an ideal situation we would find ourselves living in. But it would be quiet and that is something that can’t easily be overlooked.

However, there are a few larger projects that simply make sense to get done now. We already started the transformation so why would we stop in the middle right now and keep us from seeing our plans for our home from coming to fruition. Yes, it will be noisy, inconvenient (most likely less so than the first round), and put a decent dent in our bank account but we would have nearly everything done. And with these things off the list we wouldn’t spend the cold months cooped up in the house staring at the things that we wish we had changed.

It is a matter of deciding whether we want to relax a little now or relax and breathe easier later? Do we want the inconvenience now or later? And, most importantly, how soon do we want to complete the transformation from our house to our home? This doesn’t mean that we have to check everything off of our list but knocking out a good portion of it would go a long way and allow us to push back a few of the other, “less important”, projects.

Either way, it is safe to say that we are all looking forward to the day when we can consider everything done. And while I can’t wait for that time to come, I am also a realist and know that there will probably be an entirely new list that has been drafted in the interim and I am not completely sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing at this point. What I am enjoying is the fact that no matter when we do all of these things, we will be improving our home and we will be able to enjoy them for many years. So, here is to the future!

Mixed Opinion About Amazon

I have been shopping on Amazon for years now and to date really haven’t had any issues with the items that I have ordered. Actually, it has been a great resource to find some of the more obscure items that most stores don’t carry particularly when it comes to hard to find books. Additionally, the shipping has always been reasonable which is why I have preferred Amazon over other sites like Abe Books.

It continues to be a great place for one stop shopping offering a wide variety of items across numerous categories and from multiple vendors. When comparing one item over another or even on brand over another has been a great resource and, at least in the past, the prices have been the best around. However, things change and Amazon is slowly becoming just another place to shop with not guarantee as to best price and soon without the same variety that I have enjoyed up to this point.

Over the last couple of months, there have been a few stories that have come to light that have but a slight damper on the current and future shopping experience on the site. In addition to the general flux regarding the marketplace (non Amazon products) and whether or not the storefronts will remain beyond this year, there was recently a price fixing scheme uncovered that explained, at least on some products, the lack of competitive pricing of those items not offered directly from Amazon. Makes sense, with price no longer the main driver, why many retailers are willing to price match products sold and shipped by Amazon but not in the general marketplace. I guess this is a big reason why there are other sites that are easily beating the Amazon site as a whole in the pricing game. 

However, with all of that said, I still find myself purchasing a good amount from the site (and my coworkers can attest to the piles of packages that I get on occasion). There are still some moderately priced items, the general availability is still good, shipping is free (most of the time), and the convenience of being able to order a quick item or two while at the office is still key to my continued use. Actually, this is only one of the two main drivers of my continued patronage with the other being the benefits of Prime membership.

I am generally not a big proponent of the membership services offered by Amazon and the like but the video and music benefits have been worth the $100 per year (it helps that a lot of the movies have been watched on a free Kindle). The free video content has been utilized not just at home but on the road during business trips as well. I don’t mind waiting a year or two to watch a ‘new’ movie so it is nice to have free access to the entire prime library. I have also found that when I have ordered DVDs during the holidays that it, many times, comes with free prime access as well. An ancillary perk has been that of free 2-day shipping which has come in handy when I order that occasional item.

Overall, while things have changed and it is no longer the site that I first started using years ago, it is still a decent place to find the items that you are looking for and it is a good resource to compare prices (and match prices). While the purchasing of physical products may no longer be my primary use of the site, the value still exists in the access to a tremendous library of digital content through my prime membership. There are other sites that I go to if I want to find a better deal and in some instances there are a few physical stores where I know the prices will be better. It really is amazing to think about how much has changed over the years and where we now find the value at different places such as on Amazon.

Just An Inconvenience

 

In the 45 minutes that is took for our food to arrive at the table, Armageddon had already passed by the front window. What had been a nearly empty restaurant when we arrived was quickly beginning to fill up as those without power poured in the through the doors for a late dinner. With the occasional flickering of the lights, the dining room filled to near capacity with new guests arriving and those who had been there long before we arrived refusing to leave.

By the time we walked out the door the winds had calmed and the rain was a slow drizzle of large drops. The street was spotted with a confetti of leaves and the clouds began to lighten as we approached our cars. It was just a quick storm but the sirens and fire trucks charging down the road let us know that the rain was not the primary concern. It didn’t take long before we found ourselves inching up to inoperable intersections that seemed to encourage people to put their foot down and pray that no one decided to turn in front of them.

My wife continued down the road as I quickly stopped by the lodge to check the building. It didn’t take long and I was back on the road within a few minutes. About halfway home my phone rang and I can’t say I was surprised when my wife said that the power was out at our apartment building. Because of changes made since we moved in two and half years ago, this is no longer a rare occurrence. During Sandy, with the old systems in place, the power stayed on… now, 20-30 minutes of intense wind and rain and the building is completely shut down. Thanks PECO! In fact, the power remained absent from our apartment until the early morning hours when we were both trying to sleep in a pool of sweat.  

At least we didn’t have to clean the fridge out… yes, that issue has yet to be resolved. As if we didn’t need the extra motivation to move when our lease is up. But, in the end, this is nothing more than an inconvenience. And without the distraction of the television or internet constantly barraging my senses, it has forced me to think about what many of our friends are experiencing in Israel. As I write this there are rockets headed toward Tel Aviv and toward our old (literally) neighborhood in Jerusalem. And while there is a certain part of me that is glad that we are here with this minor inconvenience there is another part of me that wishes we were there with our friends standing together as if to say “bring it, we’re not going anywhere!” This is just an inconvenience. Baruch Hashem and may G-d bless and keep Israel and her people safe during this period of conflict and for all time.

Another One Bites The Rim

Again I am in the midst of a short week and just like every other time I have tried to take a day or two off things are not going as planned. The basic schedule that I originally set this week was to put as many hours in during the four days was going to be in the office so that I could take Friday off knowing that nothing was being pushed back to the following week. Essentially, I didn’t want the day off to cause me to fall behind. That timeline took a few dings during work on Monday but nothing that I couldn’t address with my remaining three days.

Well, that all changed during my drive home on Monday night when the asphalt decided to jump up and take another victim. I was almost home when I was one of many cars forced to slam on the breaks to avoid an accident (thanks a-hole who decided last minute to turn into the first Wawa parking lot entrance). That sudden stop prevented me from avoiding the large crater waiting like a Venus Fly Trap to claim another tire.

Seconds later my dashboard lit up like a fireworks display and I turned into the next street. I know how to change a tire as, unfortunately, I have done it a few times before but having to do so on an incline still sucks. When I pulled off the tire I could see the rip in the tire but it was what I say when I looked on the inside that let me know that this was not going to be a quick tire change… the damn rim was bent. Given my past experience it was a rather quick stop and after sweating out my frustration of the day I slowly made my way to the apartment after about 30 minutes.

After shuffling our schedules, I ended up using my wife’s car this week while the dealer ordered a tire and rim… it actually worked out well as she didn’t really need the car too much this week and was able to quickly arrange for a ride to those places she was going. The prolonged process is finally, hopefully, coming to an end this morning but not without a little bonus discover at the dealer that the back right tire needs to be replaced as well. Another big expense that I am not paying for!

That’s right, thankfully I’m not going to be paying for two tires and a rim. While I am usually not a huge proponent of additional coverage when buying a car, I am a firm believer in purchasing tire and rim protection. With this latest stop at the dealer I think I am going to get about three times my investment back over the course of the two years since I purchased the car.

Since I have to be at the dealer I might as well get a few other things taken care of while I am already being inconvenienced so I figured to get the annual inspection and oil change done. With all the work being done to the car today, I should be ready to hit the road early tomorrow morning. It would be nice to get back on schedule for the first time this week. More about that later (hopefully without any other issues to report).

Bubble Bubble Toil And Trouble

Over the weekend my wife and I had a particularly rough time on the road as no matter which route we took there were a plethora of potholes that seemed to jump out and attack our tires. It even got to the point that I scrolled through the data on my dashboard (it really isn’t as fancy as it sounds) and would constantly monitor the tire pressure after each thump and jump of the suspension. Given my constant glances, I think if the township, county, and state really wanted to do something about distracted driving they should put more of an effort into filling all of the asphalt craters scattered about the paved terrain.

Last night, on my way home from work and knowing that it was a fend for yourself night for dinner I stopped at the Wawa on my way home which is conveniently located about a mile after I get off the highway. After grabbing a quick sandwich (no hoagie this time) I stepped out back into the strangely barren parking lot, put my food in the passenger seat, and walked to the side of the building to light a cigarette. As I was standing there reading through the impatient list of emails streaming to my phone I glanced just beyond the iPhone screen and saw Lincoln staring back at me.

Not one to pass up any kind of luck at this point, I bent over, pinched the penny between my fingers and on my way back up turned my head to the right for some reason. That is when I saw it, a bubble in the sidewall of my right front tire slightly larger than a golf ball. I guess finding a lucky penny isn’t always about making good things happen, sometimes the luck is in preventing bad things from happening. If it hadn’t been for that penny I would have never seen the bubble and I would have probably not noticed the defect until my commute either to or from work later in the week when the sidewall finally gave way.

So now I find myself in the waiting room of the car dealer instead of at my desk getting work done. Thankfully I do believe in one form of extended warranty when purchasing a new car… tire and rim protection. While it is, without question, an inconvenience it could have been a lot worse and I could be out a lot of money. Sometimes the luck isn’t about making good things happen, sometimes luck is what you need to prevent the bad things from being nothing more than an inconvenience.